One of the most serious disorders of the human body is hepatomegaly. Or, in simple terms, liver enlargement. Symptoms and treatment of this phenomenon, as well as causes and prevention will be discussed in this article.
Species of hepatomegaly
Perhaps it’s worth starting with a small but very important clarification. Hepatomegaly is not a disease in itself. That is, an enlargement of the liver, the symptoms and treatment of which are described below, is also a kind of symptom that can signal a number of different diseases.
Doctors call hepatomegaly a condition of the liver when its anatomical dimensions are increased to one degree or another. If the lower edge of the organ protrudes one centimeter, then it is appropriate to talk about a small degree of deviation, if two - moderate, and if three or more - pronounced.
As you know, the structure of the liver involves dividing it into the left and right lobes. So, pathology can affect either one or the second part. As a rule, this happens. Most often, an increase in the right lobe of the liver is diagnosed, although it does not have any special significance. Both the one and the other type of localization may indicate completely identical diseases. True, sometimes it still happens that an increase in the left lobe of the liver signals problems with the pancreas, which is almost adjacent to this organ on the left. If the gland is severely inflamed and pancreatitis takes on a particularly severe form, the liver may not be able to cope with the elimination of toxins. They accumulate in it, provoking an increase.
There is another variation of the phenomenon under consideration. But it is worth stopping separately.
Diffuse enlargement of the liver - what is it?
This pathology is characterized by the death of glandular liver tissue and the growth of fibrous. The phenomenon does not have a clear localization. Liver fractions, consisting of hepatocytes, are deformed in different places and change their sizes. As a result, veins are squeezed, the organ becomes inflamed and swells.
Such deviations are very dangerous. The liver gradually ceases to cope with its functions, and the body is saturated with toxins, which can lead to its death. And the saddest thing is that the process is irreversible. It is real only to slow down, and even then - with great difficulty.
Most often, the pathology is the result of alcoholic hepatitis, serious metabolic disorders, as well as fatty degeneration.
But, of course, not only the listed reasons lead to an increase in the most important organ.
Causes of liver enlargement
Liver fractions (or one of them) can grow due to other deviations and diseases, which can conditionally be divided into three groups.
The first of them includes various liver ailments, such as hepatitis of all types (including alcoholic), echinococcosis, tuberculosis of the liver, cysts and tumors, pathologies of venous vessels, autoimmune damage to liver cells, etc.
The second group of causes includes metabolic disorders of the body (the so-called accumulation diseases). Among them, for example, fatty hepatosis (in overweight people), amyloidosis, hemochromatosis.
And in the third group - cardiovascular diseases: atrial fibrillation (permanent form), heart failure, hypertensive heart, various etymologies of heart defects, cardiosclerosis resulting from heart attacks, atherosclerosis, angina pectoris and others. The relationship of cardiovascular disease and liver problems at first glance may seem strange. But in fact, everything is logical: blood circulation is disturbed and leads to venous congestion in the liver. As a result of this, the organ swells and resizes upward.
About symptoms
If such a nuisance as an enlargement of the liver has overtaken, symptoms and treatment should be considered in a very serious perspective, since often deviation is really life-threatening.
In those cases when the prescribed dimensions are slightly exceeded (by 1-2 cm), this violation may not manifest itself at all. And this exacerbates the situation, since at a more advanced stage, assistance is much more difficult.
Therefore, you need to be as attentive to yourself as possible, and at the slightest ailment, consult a doctor. Signals of an enlarged liver can be fatigue and general weakness, heaviness in the abdomen after eating, nausea, sudden weight loss, heartburn, chronic halitosis, swelling, rash, various bleeding (including uterine), diarrhea and constipation. Yellowed skin testifies to hepatitis, and cirrhosis - an increase in the abdomen and pain in it, drowsiness in the daytime and insomnia at night, hair loss, bleeding gums, memory impairment.
Enlarged liver in children
Alas, not only adults, but also children face liver enlargement. Among the most common causes of this sad phenomenon are tuberculosis, syphilis, congenital hepatitis, congenital aplastic anemia, abnormal conditions of the bile ducts, an increase in the blood of immunoglobulins, etc. The last of these pathologies is also congenital and is characterized by a delay in the development of the baby. A child with an enlarged liver does not eat well, his skin is pale.
In the modern, rapidly “gaining weight” world, fatty hepatosis, which is the result of extra pounds, is often overtaken by children. It causes an increase in liver size in young hepatologist patients in about half of all cases.
How to diagnose an increase?
An experienced doctor can even diagnose liver enlargement by conventional palpation. But only in cases where the oversize reaches 3-6 cm. By the way, the structure of the liver suggests that the right lobe is larger than the left - in an adult they are 12.5 and 7 cm, respectively. If the increase is small, then you can see it only on ultrasound.
This method will not only reveal the deviation, but also help to understand the reasons. So, for example, an increase in the lymph nodes of the liver, detected during the study, may indicate cirrhosis, lymphogranulomatosis, HIV infection, malignant neoplasms, etc.
In addition to ultrasound, during the examination, doctors often prescribe special blood and urine tests, an X-ray, an MRI or CT scan, as well as a biopsy if cancer is suspected.
About treatment options
As noted above, liver enlargement, the symptoms and treatment of which are discussed in this article, is not a disease in itself. Therefore, in case of detection, it is important to determine the source and deal with it.
Of the medicines for liver diseases, drugs such as Gepabene, Essential, Essliver, Artichol, Interferon and many others are often prescribed (it all depends on the particular disease).
Traditional medicine offers to help yourself with decoctions of corn stigmas, yarrow, dandelion, calendula, immortelle.
In particularly difficult cases (with oncology, cysts, etc.), the optimal treatment option is surgery. In the fight against cancer, vascular embolization is also often used today, which stops the "supply" of blood to the area affected by the tumor, and the neoplasm "dies of hunger." In some cases, liver transplantation may be required.
Naturally, complex therapy involves an appropriate diet and rejection of bad habits, in particular, from alcohol. Fatty, fried, spicy, smoked, as well as legumes, sorrel, radish, radish, etc. should become a taboo for a person suffering from liver disease.
Prevention
Unfortunately, to prevent liver enlargement is not real in all cases. Of course, if we are talking about cirrhosis, alcoholic hepatitis or fatty hepatosis, then everything is simple - you need to try to keep the weight normal and not abuse alcohol. But no one is safe from viral diseases.
Although in any case a healthy lifestyle, personal hygiene and attention to your body reduces the chances of earning a serious ailment at times. And this concerns not only the liver.